ESCONDIDO  Escondido officials say they plan to reopen one of San Diego County’s most iconic public art pieces this winter after a contractor completes $50,000 in repair work.

But the 12-acre Queen Califia sculpture garden will have limited hours and need a long series of additional repairs and upgrades after it reopens, city officials said this week.

The garden, which opened in 2003 but has been closed since May because of deterioration and damage from vandalism, is one of four public art pieces in the county by renowned French artist Niki de Saint Phalle. The others are the Sun God at UC San Diego, a large piece near Petco Park and a group of sculptures next to Balboa Park’s Mingei International Museum.

Last week, the city of Escondido and the Niki Charitable Art Foundation — a group that oversees Saint Phalle’s art pieces around the world — agreed to spend $25,000 each on the Queen Califia repairs, which will include replacing hundreds of damaged mirrors and colored floor tiles.

That announcement came after Escondido’s efforts to maintain and secure the garden were criticized in an 18-page evaluation completed by Rosa Lowinger & Associations, an independent art consultant hired by the foundation. Lowinger was recommended by the renowned Getty Conservation Institute in Los Angeles.

In the report, Lowinger said the garden had suffered from neglect, the use of recycled sewer water to clean the sculptures and malfunctioning security cameras.

City planner Jay Petrek disagreed with those criticisms, blaming the deterioration of the sculptures on vandalism and normal wear-and-tear.

“We totally value those beautiful pieces of art,” he said. “There are so few of those around the world.”

Petrek said the repairs would begin in October or November and be complete by the end of this year or early next year.

The Niki Charitable Art Foundation also agreed to cover the cost of repairing the garden’s walls and some other features after it reopens. David Stevenson, a trustee of the foundation, estimated those upgrades would cost at least another $50,000.

To avoid future vandalism, city officials have also agreed to open the garden to the public only when someone representing the city is present.

Petrek said that would mean limited hours at the garden, which had been open sunrise to sunset before the closure. But he said the garden might still be open frequently if enough people volunteer to oversee it a few hours a week as docents.

Stevenson said the foundation is confident city officials would be taking great care of the garden from now on.

“What’s gone on in the past is a reflection of city economics that seems to be a problem everywhere,” Stevenson said. “We’re encouraged by the attitude of the city going forward. They seem very prepared to step up.”

The foundation wants the city to raise money for future repairs and maintenance by creating a gift kiosk near the garden’s entrance where small replicas of Saint Phalle’s sculptures would be sold.

Petrek said city officials are open to the idea, but stressed that plan would require two volunteers working simultaneously: one to run the kiosk and another to monitor the garden’s elaborate maze and other features.

Lowinger’s report suggested the city could charge admission to the garden, but Petrek and Stevenson said they rejected that idea because Saint Phalle donated it to the city so the public could enjoy it for free.

Petrek said city officials are exploring whether some repairs and maintenance could be covered by interest Escondido earns on public art fees collected from developers.

Stevenson said the foundation can’t afford to spend much on repairs. The foundation’s $30 million in assets consists mostly of art pieces. He said the foundation has only about $1 million in cash to cover annual expenses and emergency maintenance projects.

The garden is named after Califia, a fictional warrior queen. It was one of the last sculptures Saint Phalle, a longtime La Jolla resident, completed before her death in 2002.